BROOKINGS Dont be surprised at high noon Saturday if you see and hear hundreds of motorcycles roaring through Brookings. Its all for the 727 DAVs 20th Annual Charity Poker Run, which benefits veterans.
Come out and enjoy a great, well-organized charity run, Bob Foster, one of the events backers, said in an interview with the Brookings Register. Its structured and we promote safety and support a super cause to help the vets get to their VA appointments.
Last years charity ride attracted 450 motorcycles and brought in $53,000 for the Disabled American Veterans Hospital Transportation Network, Foster said. It was a record fundraising effort that brought the lifetime total donation to the network to $449,000 over a 19-year period. The network provides free rides for Veterans to the VA health care systems and VA clinics.
Registration begins at 10 a.m. for Saturdays event at the Dacotah Bank Center, 824 32nd Ave., and costs $20 per person. The parade will depart at noon, traveling west on Sixth Street, then turning south on Main Avenue and heading out of Brookings to the following locations:
- Flandreau (sponsored by the Flandreau VFW at the City Park)
- Madison VFW
- Arlington American Legion
- Estelline American Legion
Participants will return to the Dacotah Bank Center in Brookings afterward, where an auction and door prizes await.
Its kind of the same mixture of different things therell be some cash prizes, gift certificates, Jack Daniels barrel head weve had that for about 10-12 years, Foster said.
He added that a flat-screen TV and a smart watch are also part of the prize pool, along with an American flag afghan. Besides that, theres also a $500 prize for the best hand.
Foster said he hopes the card draw will be done by 5:30 p.m. so the top three poker hands can be awarded; after that, Rolling Thunder, which assists with the charity poker run, will have its annual raffle. Once thats complete, then the door prizes will be awarded.
The event is certainly a popular one, too, with Foster pointing out that its averaged 700 people in attendance over the last several years.
Dont have a motorcycle and/or its raining cats and dogs? Hey, no worries. All vehicles are welcome at the charity poker run, and its going take place rain or shine. And if you have more questions, Foster said folks can contact him at 605-690-1961.
Contact Mondell Keck at [email protected].
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